The Easiest French 75 Cocktail Recipe Ever

Name: The Easiest French 75 Cocktail Recipe Ever
Prep time: 5 min
Total time: 5 min
Yield: 1
Ingredients: 1 Oz Gin; 2 Oz Champagne or Prosecco; 0.5 Oz Lemon juice; 0.25 Teaspoon sugar syrup (or to taste); Sugar and a lemon slice (for the rim of the glass); Maraschino cherry, to garnish; Ice

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PREP TIME 5 min

Cocktail Type

Gin

Great for

New Years

Difficulty

Easy

JUMP TO RECIPE

The French 75 cocktail recipe has a colorful, multicultural origin story — it was dreamed up in New York City by a Scottish bartender who named it after a French field gun! Not to mention the fact that it was first stirred up at the height of Prohibition of course…

The story goes that barkeep Harry MacElhone chose the name because the drink had a fair amount of kick, which he likened to the firepower of the French 75mm field gun that was used during World War I. Today, the French 75 martini is still enjoyed around the globe, with the same reputation for packing a strong punch.

The best French 75 cocktail recipe

French cocktails are classics for a reason – it’s glamor in a glass. To start you off, here is a short and sweet explanation of what’s in a French 75 and how to make it at home:

QUICK TIPS

You can also serve it in a Martini glass for some extra swagger

Try sparkling cider instead of Champagne to make a French Harvest cocktail

Serve it up with some oysters for a sophisticated feast

INGREDIENTS

MAKE FOR

1 Person

1 Oz

30 Ml

1 Parts

Gin

2 Oz

60 Ml

2 Parts

Champagne or Prosecco

0.5 Oz

15 Ml

0.5 Parts

Lemon juice

0.25

Teaspoon sugar syrup (or to taste)

Sugar and a lemon slice (for the rim of the glass)

Maraschino cherry, to garnish

Ice

INSTRUCTIONS

Prepare the glass by running a slice of lemon around the rim and dipping it into a shallow bowl or saucer with sugar

Add the gin, lemon juice, and sugar syrup to a shaker with ice – cover and shake

Strain the mixture into your prepared glass

Top off with Champagne or Prosecco

Garnish with a Maraschino cherry and enjoy

How strong is the French 75 cocktail?

Each French 75 contains two ounces of gin and two ounces of either Champagne or prosecco. This places its alcohol content at around 19% ABV (38 proof). As such, it’s a rather strong drink that is best enjoyed in sipping mode. By comparison, a Long Island Iced Tea normally has a 17.2% ABV, while Pina Colada comes in at 9.8% and a Pornstar Martini at 13.6%.

French 75 cocktail variations to try

Like the best gin cocktails tend to do, classic French 75 has inspired its fair share of cocktail spin-offs over the years. Here is a little list of our favorite variations:

Old Cuban. This NYC-inspired drink combines aged rum, lime juice, simple syrup, Angostura bitters, mint, and Champagne.
South Mint 75. With notes of Southeast Asia coming to the fore, the South Mint 75 features gin, lime juice, lemongrass syrup, mint, and cava.
French Harvest. This drink sticks pretty closely to the French 75 formula, only swapping out Champagne in favor of sparkling cider.
West 75th. This New York Sour-inspired take on the French 75 yields a vibrant combination of French apple brandy, lemon juice, raspberry syrup, and orange bitters, charged with sparking red wine.
Maxwell. This decidedly refreshing drink combines cucumber vodka, cucumber juice, orange-flavored Grand Marnier liqueur, lemon juice, and agave nectar, topped off with Champagne.

How to make a batch of French 75 cocktail for a party

Hosting a large crowd and keen to serve up some Parisian glamor? We highly recommend a French 75 punch bowl for everything from wedding cocktails to casual get-togethers. This approach allows you to treat your guests to the gorgeous flavors of this popular cocktail without having to shake each one up individually.

To serve eight to ten people, the ingredients list will be as follows:

16 oz (2 cups) gin
32 oz (4 cups) Champagne or prosecco
8 oz (1 cup) lemon juice
6 oz simple syrup

The trick lies in adding the Champagne just before your guests arrive. Combine the rest of the ingredients in your punch bowl ahead of time. Then add the final touches at the last possible moment to ensure that the bubbles are lively and sparkly!

You can also prep your glasses with a sugar rim and a cherry garnish beforehand. This way you will be able to serve your guests from the punch bowl without missing a beat.

TOP TIP: To keep your punch cool without watering it down too much, freeze water in a bowl or cake tin to make an ice chunk. You can even add some orange slices as a pretty garnish to dial up the wow factor.

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FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Yes! There are many tasty ways to mimic the flavor profile of the classic French 75 martini without using alcohol. For instance, you could use fresh lemon juice, non-alcoholic bitters, and premium tonic water to hit that lovely herbaceous note that would come from the gin in the original French 75 cocktail recipe. Alternatively, you could simply copy the existing recipe on this page, substituting non-alcoholic gin and 0% sparkling wine.

The delightful French 75 walks a gorgeous olfactory tightrope between crisp citrus and sweet effervescence. The slight kiss of simple syrup beautifully balances the lemon and gin. In short, this pretty drink goes down easy even though it means business.

It's relatively strong, yes — a drink that's meant to be sipped and savored. After all, the ingredients for a French 75 cocktail include both gin and Champagne. This is why it was named for the powerful French 75 field gun.